New York Rangers star goaltenderIgor Shesterkin along with his agent have been working towards cementing a long-term contract extension with general manager Chris Drury and the Vezina winning goaltender may have received a large gift from Sportico.
Yesterday, the rankings of each NHL franchise in terms of valuations were revealed by the magazine and showed that the New York Rangers are the highest valued American hockey team in the NHL. The ranking stated that they are now worth $3.25 billion which is a 33% increase compared to last season.
This ranking could certainly bolster the views of Shesterkin's agent who is trained to secure Shesterkin as the highest paid goaltender in the NHL and the highest paid New York Ranger. Shesterkin has made it clear that he wants to be the highest paid member of the team as he feels he is the backbone of the franchise, and he has some accolades to cement his argument.
However, it's clear the Rangers do not want to price themselves out of the cap space they have for one player and feel that his ask is far too much to bare. The rumor around the web is that he is looking for a contract of eight years worth over $13 million per season.
As great as he is, it will be hard to believe that the Rangers would give up that valuable cap space even if the cap goes up because as we all know players salaries will continue to rise which will negate that advantage.
In the end, I do believe the Rangers will secure a deal with Shesterkin and he will set a new precedent as the Rangers along with the Rangers fan base could not stomach the idea of seeing their prized goaltender walk out the front doors of Madison Square gardens on July 1st 2025 and sign with another team.